This is a special post for quick takes by mike_hawke. Only they can create top-level comments. Comments here also appear on the Quick Takes page and All Posts page.
News headlines have measurable, harmful effects on people so I never want them to be shown to me without my explicit consent. But YouTube does not have an option to permanently disable the Breaking News section.
The only solutions to this I know of are:
Contort my usage by never opening the main page of YouTube
Use uBlock with a custom filter to get rid of the news section.
Stop using YouTube
I consider this to be psychotoxic design, plain and simple. The next time I need an example of tech companies doing something bad, I will have to reach no further than this.
YouTube does have a "Don't recommend channel" button. Judicious use of this option, plus not clicking on news, can dramatically reduce the quantity of news displayed.